A Wisconsin woman accused of spiking her friend's water bottle with a lethal dose of eye drops was found guilty Tuesday of first-degree intentional homicide.
The jury found Jessy Kurczewski, 39, guilty on all counts, including intentional homicide and theft, after deliberating over two days. Kurczewski broke down in tears as the verdict was read in Waukesha County court.
Kurczewski had been charged in connection with the death of 62-year-old Lynn Hernan, who was found dead in her home in Pewaukee in 2018.
Kurczewski was also accused of defrauding Hernan of nearly $300,000 in the two years leading up to her death, according to the criminal complaint.
Kurczewski had pleaded not guilty to first-degree intentional homicide and two counts of felony theft.
Hernan was found unconscious on Oct. 3, 2018, seated in her living room recliner next to a table filled with prescription pills with what appeared to be crushed medication on her chest, according to a police report. The case was initially ruled a drug overdose.
Kurczewski, Hernan's friend and caregiver, called the police to report that she went to Hernan's home and found her unresponsive and not breathing, according to the complaint. Kurczewski allegedly told police that she believed Hernan was suicidal because of her debilitating health conditions, the complaint stated.
The Waukesha County Sheriff's Office reopened the investigation roughly three months after Hernan's death when the toxicological report showed Hernan had a fatal dose of tetrahydrozoline, the main ingredient in over-the-counter eye drops, in her system, according to the criminal complaint.
Kurczewski was arrested and charged in June 2021.
12 май 2024
